ComEd Takes it to New Heights for Customer

The AON Center, the third-tallest skyscraper in downtown Chicago, needed to replace two transformers to make sure the thousands of people who work there continue to have reliable energy to power their businesses. Because the enclosure for the transformers is located on the building’s 83rd-floor roof, and each transformer weighs more than 19,000 pounds, a sky-crane helicopter was brought in to get the job done.

The job required a well-coordinated effort among ComEd teams, the City of Chicago and the AON Center.

“In order to ensure this job was done safely and efficiently, teams planned for months to ensure they understood the risks of bringing a helicopter to one of the busiest areas of Chicago,” said Vito Martino, vice president of distribution operations. “The collaboration throughout this evolution was critical. Due to the intense and thorough planning, this evolution was executed flawlessly and event free.”

The ComEd team worked with Chicago police to close off streets and sidewalks in an area filled with office buildings, condominiums and hotels. The helicopter hovered at less than 100 feet at times to carefully place the old transformers on the bed of a truck and load the new transformers for the trip more than 1,100 feet up to the roof.

“This was the definition of a premier customer experience,” Martino said. “We created an innovative solution to ensure that the AON Center would be able to supply its tenants with reliable energy for years to come. AON Center was very happy with the results. I couldn’t be prouder of the teams that worked together to make this happen.”